Divine Authority and Headship

In a way this message is related to the message that I posted yesterday regarding the "Elijah Ministry".

The last verse of the last Book of the Old testament says:

"And he will turn the hearts of the fathers to the children, and the hearts of the children to their fathers, lest I come and strike the earth with a curse" (Malachi 4:6, NKJV, emphasis added).

Notice that the above verse does not say "the hearts of the mothers to the children". It is because of the authority and headship of God's family units is vested in the fathers and not in the mothers. I believe in the last days God is using the Spirit of Elijah to restore the proper divine authority and headship to his people and the Church. It is the interest of every christian family to be sensitive to what God is saying to His people. We are living in the last of the last days, and it is easy to see many christian families are broken down because there is a curse working if fathers refuse to take their God given role as the head of the families.

The source of all authority is God the Father. The authority of fatherhood in the christian family is closely related to the eternal Fatherhood of God.

This truth is made clear by Paul:

"For this reason, I bow my knees before the father of our Lord Jesus Christ, for Whom every family in heaven and on earth is named - from Whom all fatherhood takes its title and derives its name" (Eph. 3:14,15, The Amplified Bible, emphasis added).

In other words, every other fatherhood in creation is derived from the eternal Fatherhood of God. The fatherhood in the christian family is the projection of the Fatherhood of God in heaven. The authority of the father in relation to his wife and children is a type of Authority of God the Father in relation to Christ (God the Son).

The authority and headship of the father in the christian family is also made known through the eternal Authority and Headship of God the Father.

This truth is also made clear by Paul:

"But I want you to know and realize that Christ is the head of every man, the head of woman is her husband, and Head of Christ is God" (1 Cor.11:3).

Here we see the pattern of divine authority working under the Headship of God. We all have authority by taking our place of right relationship in this chain of authority. In a home, proper divine authority is exercised when the husband is subject to Christ, and the wife is subject to her husband. If either of these relationships in broken down, the authority in the home is broken down and there will be confusion and chaos in the home and children will inevitably suffer. If the husband is not subject to Christ he does not have the authority that he should have. If the wife is not subject to the husband she does not have the authority that she should have. The nature and principles of authority is illustrated by the conversation between Jesus and a certain centurion (Luke 7:8). A person has authority if and only if he is under a higher authority. And the highest authority is God the Father.

There is a parallel truth in the Local Church concerning divine authority and headship:

"For the husband is head of the wife, as also Christ is head of the church; and He is the Savior of the body. Therefore, just as the church is subject to Christ, so let the wives be to their own husbands in everything" (Eph. 5:23,24).

Paul wrote to Timothy concerning the role of women in the local church:

"Let a woman learn in silence with all submission. And I do not permit a woman to teach or to have authority over a man, but to be in silence" (1 Tim. 2:11,12, NKJV, emphasis added).